


Time to Get Serious

by AsphixiatedMinx



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Drama AU, Gen, Highschool AU, Theater AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-08-11
Updated: 2013-08-17
Packaged: 2017-12-23 02:52:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/921140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AsphixiatedMinx/pseuds/AsphixiatedMinx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's senior year, and it's been decided their spring production would be Legally Blonde. It's their last production of highschool, and they'd be damned if they didn't go out with a bang. It's time to get serious. (SNK Highschool/Theater AU)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Overture

To say Legally Blonde is a large production is a huge understatement. It is, in fact, a monster of a show. There was no time for dilly dallying, and most certainly not any time for arguing with the stage manager.

"Levi, there is absolutely no way you can do all the quick changes!"

"I do not trust those gremlins with these pieces!"

"You don't have a choice!"

"Watch me!"

It was a month into the production, and there was already a lot of tension and high strung feelings. Legally Blonde would be the seniors' last production in high school together, and they were determined to leave their mark. Both cast and crew were pouring blood, sweat, and tears to make the show the best one yet. Ever since the cast list went up on the bulletin board of broken dreams, people were hard at work at memorizing lines and building set pieces. However, not all were content with their roles.

"I'm still surprised I got casted as Elle," Annie grumbled as she sat in the choir room during one of their rare breaks. Her cast mate and close friend, Bertholdt, laughed from beside her.

"I think you're fitting for it," he replied easily as Annie made a face.

"I don't know, I think Petra or Christa would be better."

Bertholdt, who had been cast as Emmett, was more than content with the casting. He would be sharing a lovely kiss at the end of the show with the girl he had a crush on for quite some time. In fact, he thought all of the casting was brilliant. The actor who would be playing Warner could be quite the twat the role called for, and Connie would be playing the comical role of Kyle. Judging from the progress of the set building so far, it seemed as though everything would fall into place perfectly. The actors, however, were deceived.

"Excuse me, freshman, what did I tell you about wood staining?"

"U-uh, n-not to use the paint sponges?"

"And what are you doing?"

"U-using a painting sponge."

"It seems that way. Now, do you know what you have done?"

"R-ruined it for everyone else?"

"That is exactly right, now go talk to Jean to see if he has anything in props for you to do. I am done with you. You are officially discharged from set crew."

Mikasa Ackerman watched the shocked and dejected freshman boy, whose name slipped her mind, walk away. Perhaps she was a little harsh on the poor kid, but there was no way a rookie mistake like that would cost them their Tommy Tune Award. It wasn't just her being incredibly rough on the newbies either, the costumes and makeup master, Levi, was also being exceptionally critical. Then again, he was critical of everyone. As she cleaned up a small paint drip, she looked over to where Levi was arguing with Erwin, their stage manager. It was probably over something ridiculously small like what color Vivienne's eyeshadow would be or the like. She turned her attention back to the set piece in front of her.

So, how to fix this idiot's mistake?

"Levi, you can't put anyone other than Warner and Vivienne in black!"

"Oh, so now you're going to tell me I can only put Elle in pink?"

"Yes, that too!"

"But what about makeup?! Those girls get so washed out with nude lip colors, and I'll be damned if I have to give Vivienne a red lip!"

"Why not red?!"

"It's too bold for the character!"

"Make it darker!"

"Way too vampy!"

"Levi, pink is Elle's signature color, and darker colors would go better with Vivienne's wardrobe anyways!"

"But then the lip color will smear, and it will be so noticeable!"

"Alright, fine, fuck you! Do what you need to!"

Erwin, as much as he wanted to have a better handle on what goes on in the costumes and makeup department, he simply didn't have the time to argue with Levi on everything. Although the two had been friends since elementary school, their viewpoints often did not match up when it came to how they envisioned how the actors would be dressed. Both males had exceptionally strong view points, and although Erwin was the stage manager, Levi always got in the last word when it came to costumes, or who would be joining costume crew.

About ten freshman girls joined costumes and makeup every year, and by the time the first week of work was over, Levi managed to scare off the majority of them to join props or leave theater completely. Erwin was completely baffled by how he managed to do so but never asked. He had no intention of feeling the wrath of the male in charge of costumes and makeup, and he had a feeling that if he got too involved with what goes on in the costume loft, he would get a taste of it.

Erwin walked over to the edge of the stage and picked up his notes, sighing at the long list of things that needed to be done in the next few months. He was incredibly stressed, not only because Legally Blonde was a monster of a show, but also because he would be without an assistant stage manager. Usually, Hanji helped him organize crew and ensure actors remembered their cue, but she decided to audition for the role of Paulette and got it without a second thought from the directors. Putting down the binder, he made his way over to Mikasa to check on what has been built so far and see if she required any assistance. As he opened his mouth to speak, though, the lights flickered out, and frustrated cries erupted in the theater.

"WHO DID THE THING?" he heard the lights master, Armin, yell somewhere off stage left, soon followed by a crash and a frustrated scream from the props closet. Erwin took in a few calming breaths, massaging his temples, before he spoke in a commanding voice.

"I assume there has been a power outage, and so we will have to cut this day short," he said, fumbling around for his flashlight keychain. He heard the grumbles of complaint and anger from the seniors mixed with the sighs of relief from the freshman and chuckled lightly to himself. "If someone would get Jean safely out of the props closet, that would be greatly appreciated. Also, Eren, go dig Levi out of the mountain of fabric he probably knocked over."

"Yes, Mommy," Marco and Eren snickered as they went off to do their tasks. Erwin made a displeased face at the nickname, but did not bother commenting on it. Ever since they made the joke that S.M. for Stage Manager could also stand for Stage Mommy, the nickname stuck, and even the underclassmen referred to Erwin as that.

"Everyone else, see if you can clean up as much as possible, and we'll pick up again tomorrow."

In the costume loft, it proved a difficult time for Eren, getting Levi out of there. He stumbled through the door, cursing the stairs as he narrowly avoided fallen mannequins and fabric until he found Levi desperately gathering articles of clothing near the back.

"Hey, Captain, we have to go," Eren said, stepping over a shoe. Levi made a noise of disagreement.

"I can't leave my babies here like this, Eren!" Levi snapped in response. Eren raised an eyebrow. He never did understand Levi's infatuation with clothing.

"We'll be back tomorrow."

"But the makeup! What if it gets too hot and melts, or if something falls of the shelf and-!"

"Levi, get up before I have to carry you!"

A brief moment of silence followed.

"Whatever."

Eren heard a rustling of fabric and assumed Levi was getting up.

"I assume we're all meeting up in the back lot, so hurry up and get down there," Eren settled as he turned and clumsily made his way back to where he came from. He heard quiet footsteps behind him followed by curses and unpleased mutterings. Eren laughed to himself as he continued on his way.

"You know, Levi, if you hurry and get down there, you might be able to mess with the football players' cars as payback for what happened last week…"

As soon as the words left his mouth, he heard the footsteps become more rapid behind him until they slowed down to his pace right next to him.

"Shut up," Levi retorted before Eren said anything.

"I didn't say anything, Captain."

"Yeah, but I'm sure you were about to."

The duo finally made their way down into the back parking lot where both cast and crew alike were. The actors were running through lines as they waited to be told what to do next, and crew waited impatiently, already sweating from the humid heat. Erwin looked up at their arrival.

"So, Levi, we came to the decision that because the cast really needs this rehearsal time, that they will go to your house."

"You decided this without me?" Levi asked incredulously. Erwin nodded.

"We cannot let the power outage put us too off schedule, and as you have the largest house, it would make the most sense."

Levi considered for a second. "Fine, but only the actors can go."

The actors let out a cheer as they realized they would no longer have to withstand the heat while rehearsing, and began piling into their cars. Levi let out one last sigh before getting into his car as well and driving home. When he arrived, he was shocked to see that there were many more cars than expected as well as his fellow crew members exiting them.

Grabbing Eren and Mikasa's sleeves, he snapped, "Did I not say that only actors were to come?"

The adopted siblings laughed nervously, but didn't reply, unsure of what to say. Connie, who had stopped to see what was going on intercepted before something happened.

"Hey, Levi, why not let crew be here, too? I mean, YOLO, right?" he joked, only to receive an icy glare, causing him to quickly retreat to the other actors.

Levi soon realized there would be no way of getting rid of them, so simply walked inside his house, letting everyone else enter. They then went into the large ballroom Levi's parents had built in for an unknown reason and began settling down for rehearsal. Crew relaxed to the side as the cast ran through choreography and lyrics in the center. Erwin made notes to give later and diligently watched over everyone, similarly to how a mother would.

Erwin was very much like a mother to everyone anyways. He watched over them, made sure everyone got proper nourishment, and gave them responsibilities to ready them for what lies ahead of them in life. It wasn't just Erwin who filled a position similarly to that of one in a family, but rather it was everyone in theater. They were a family, and although Legally Blonde would be their last show together in high school, they would be damned if they didn't carry on their legacy. Besides, they were family, and family sticks together.


	2. Scene of the Crime

There were many reasons as to why Levi did not entrust anything to underclassmen, and until a week after the power outage, there were very few who understood why. After what could only be described as a disaster, it was known by all why Levi disliked underclassmen so much.

_I'm going to slaughter whoever did this._

Levi stood, hands and jaw clenched, staring at the sight before him, trying not to go out and bash the nearest person's skull in. It wasn't his place generally to have a bad temper; that was Eren's.

_Deep breaths, Levi, get a hold of yourself._

He heard someone enter the girl's dressing room, followed by a sharp intake of breath.

" _It's the scene of the cri-i-ime!_ "

Levi's attention snapped away from the mess before him and to Hanji, and he felt his temper rapidly slip away from him.

"This is not a joking matter, Hanji," he hissed, gesturing to the mass of broken and smeared makeup, "When I find out who the fuck did this, I am going to kill them."

Hanji rolled her eyes, "Oh please, Levi, it's just makeup. Go out and buy some more, it's not a big deal."

"Just makeup?! Not a big deal?! Excuse me, but do you see this MAC eye shadow? It was limited edition and-!"

Hanji sighed, cutting his rant off, "Please, spare me the details, Captain Costume, just go talk to Mommy Erwin. He'll get it all sorted out for you."

Levi gritted his teeth together silently and stormed out, leaving a chuckling Hanji in his wake. Over something so seemingly trivial, Levi got himself incredibly worked up over it, and Hanji never really understood why in all the years they'd known each other. Despite their close friendship, there would always be parts of themselves that would be complete enigmas to the other.

Minutes later, majority of crew sat in the front few rows of the auditorium with Levi and Erwin standing before them on the stage extension, curiously wondering what could possibly be so important to pause their steady work flow. Considering the sudden circumstances, the only possible situation could be that of an emergency, and a life or death one at that.

Erwin cleared his throat to ensure he had everyone's attention before speaking, "I have been notified that someone, we are not yet sure who, has damaged part of Levi's makeup collection. If you did this, tell us now, and you will have a much less of a punishment than if you lie about it."

Levi made a noise of disagreement, letting everyone know that no matter when they confess, the poor soul who did such would be getting equally as harsh of a punishment. No one messed with Levi's babies without any sort of retribution. His fellow crew masters and mistress felt great sympathy towards him, considering they would probably blow up even worse than he, given the circumstances.

With that, crew was once again dismissed to go back to work, though there was a tension not there before. Even the newer crew members who would be stupid enough to mess with Levi's "sacred kingdom." They had a feeling whoever did it would not be leaving the auditorium unscathed, be it physically, mentally, or financially.

"Any idea who did it yet," Eren asked, sitting at the edge of the stage where Levi was attempting to salvage some products. Levi shook his head angrily, obviously still equally as upset as he was earlier.

"Not a clue, but I'm pretty sure it was a freshman," Levi grumbled, trying to piece a broken blush into place, "And don't you have work to do?"

Eren chuckled nervously, he did in fact have a lot of work to do. There were still many set pieces that needed to be built and painted, and Mikasa was working everyone as hard as she could, utilizing the time they had to the max. Eren needed a quick break that she would never have given him if he had asked, so he slipped away while she was not looking.

Taking his lack of answer as a yes, Levi carried on talking, "I doubt I'll be able to save all of this, so I'm going to have to go makeup shopping later. Care to join me, Jaeger?"

Remembering the last time he had joined Levi on a trip to Sephora, Eren had to force down a blush to hide his embarrassment. "Thanks for the offer, Captain, but I think I'll pass."

Levi shrugged, making it seem as though he was expecting that answer, but felt rather dismayed at Eren's rejection. He was looking forward to spending time with the German boy, and though the two had been friends for years, Levi planned on changing that by the time striking the set rolled around.

Erwin walked over to the two sitting, his binder of notes tucked underneath his arm. He shot Eren a disapproving look.

"Eren, get back to work, you have too much to do for you to be dilly-dallying," Erwin sighed, standing above the duo.

Eren mumbled complaints under his breath, but begrudgingly got back up and sauntered back to where he was staining the wood on one of the wagons.

"Need something?" Levi asked, giving Erwin a bored stare.

Erwin sat down where Eren once sat and shook his head. "Knowing that most of the things broken are incredibly expensive and technically were purchased by you and not the school or Mr. Pixis, we can't really give you all the money to repurchase all of it."

Levi sighed, "Yeah, I figured. It's fine. The asshat who did this will pay me back twofold."

"Assuming we find out who it is. I know you're upset about this, Levi, but we don't have the time to deal with it."

Levi's eyes narrowed at Erwin, "What are you trying to get at here, Smith?"

"Exactly what I said. We don't have the time to waste trying to figure out who messed with your makeup, plus we need all the help we can get with this huge build. And by the way, you should probably start building, too, or at least put together the mannequins in the department store."

"We don't need anyone like that."

"I'd like you to take a look at my list of things that need to be done and then tell me we don't need someone."

Levi didn't respond, and instead focused his attention back to the shattered blush.

"That's what I thought."

After the work day was over, crew members left, few at a time once they finished cleaning brushes and putting away tools. Erwin was naturally the last left to leave because he needed to lock up, but also left were the other senior crew members, ensuring everything would be in order for tomorrow. Eren was over putting a box of screws back into the tool cabinet when Levi approached him, hoping he had a change of heart about joining on his makeup shopping trip.

Hey, Jaegermeister-."

"No."

"You didn't even listen to what I had to say."

"If you keep using that nickname, the answer will always be no."

"Fine, Jaeger, I just wanted to see if you changed your mind about going makeup shopping with me."

"Certainly not."

"Is there any particular reason as to why not?"

Eren had to pause for a moment to think of the reason. He couldn't tell Levi the real reason as to why he refused to go because that would most definitely give him the wrong sort of idea. Instead, he said, "Oh, I need to drive Mikasa home."

Levi raised an eyebrow, "Eren, you can't drive. You failed the test twice already."

Eren, realizing his mistake, quickly backtracked, "Oh, I uh… I have a huge paper for history due tomorrow, and I really need to get home."

Mikasa suddenly appeared next to the two, though acted as though she had been there the entire time and said, "Eren, I'm in your history class, we don't have any homework tonight."

Eren turned to glare at his adoptive sister, making a mental note to kill her later for letting that slip to Levi, but she just shrugged nonchalantly then walked away, leaving the two males. Turning back to Levi, Eren watched his lips form a triumphant smirk.

"So are you going to tell me the real reason why you don't want to go, or did you change your mind?" Levi's smirk grew as Eren shook his head.

"Not a chance I'm telling you, but seeing as you won't give up, I'll go just so you shut up," Eren sighed, running hand through his hair in frustration. Levi watched and had to fight the temptation to reach over and run his hands through Eren's hair, which he assumed felt as incredibly soft and silky as it looked. Instead, he turned away from the tool cabinet.

"Let me go make sure Hanji will take my sister home, then we'll go," he muttered, feeling embarrassed at how incredibly gay his earlier thought was. Levi then left to go track down his childhood friend, leaving Eren behind him, who wondered if he had simply imagined the blush on Levi's cheeks. He brushed off the feeling though and also left to retrieve his school bag.

The two reconvened at Levi's car then made their way to the mall, passing the time listening and singing along to show tunes. Eren sang all the female's parts in a silly falsetto, poking fun at his soprano friends, while Levi jokingly sang the bass parts, which were much too low for his countertenor voice. When they arrived, they walked to the Sephora as Levi quietly critiqued the people's outfits with Eren laughing at his friend's antics.

However, when they came to the Hot Topic, Levi paused in horror at all the tacky looking articles of clothing, and Eren simply stated, "Let's stop by here after you're done."

Levi shot Eren a dirty look.

"I think not," he replied matter-of-factly, then carried on walking. He heard Eren laughing behind him, then fast-paced footsteps as he jogged to catch up with him.

In Sephora, Levi swatched a multitude of eye shadows and lipsticks, and Eren stood next to him, sighing from boredom.

"Those two look exactly the same," Eren pointed out.

"No, Eren, they do not. That shade has a much stronger blue undertone than the other, which is distinctly warm toned, not to mention the-."

"With all due respect, Captain Makeup, I do not care about undertones."

"If you don't care, you shouldn't have brought it up."

Eren flapped his hands in confused frustration, "I didn't bring it up!"

"Whatever you say, Jaegermeister."

Levi then turned his attention back to the Illamasqua products on the display before him, hearing Eren grumble complaints next to him. After picking out the products he wanted, he checked out, then left the store, Eren trailing behind him.

"Finally, we're done," he said, shoving his hands into his pockets.

Levi smiled mischievously. "Actually, I wanted to Target to take a look at some drugstore products, as well as stop by the MAC counter to see their newest collection."

Eren groaned, "Are you fucking kidding me?"

Levi laughed in response, "I never joke about makeup, Eren."

He then walking in the direction of Macy's, Eren trudging behind him. As they walked, Levi began to softly sing.

" _Kiss me too fiercely, hold me too tight. I need help believing you're with me tonight. My wildest dreaming could not forsee lying beside you with you wanting me._ "

Levi looked expectantly at Eren who shook his head. "We're not doing this again. No way."

Levi shrugged, continuing on, singing the chorus and next verse as they kept walking. However, as they reached the entrance to Macy's, Eren finally broke and began singing as well.

" _Every moment as long as you're mine I'll wake up my body and make up for lost time_ ," they sang together, harmonizing beautifully.

Levi smiled at him, indicating that Eren should sing the next part as they stopped and looked straight into each other's eyes.

" _Say there's no future for us as a pair_ ," Eren sang.

" _And though I may know, I don't care,_ " they finished together, deciding not to finish the rest of the song due to the unwanted attention they were receiving. Coughing, they stepped apart, not looking at each other.

"So," Eren said at last, "You wanted to look at MAC?"

"Yeah…"

Awkwardly coughing once more, they stepped into the store, pretending as though nothing ever happened.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Terribly sorry for taking a gross amount of time to upload this chapter, but at long last, here it is. I absolutely could not resist throwing in Wicked because, gosh do I love that musical. But yeah, if you liked this chapter, please check out the Shingeki no Theater tag on tumblr, as well as check out my (lordtwink) and my girlfriend's (gaymakeout) tumblrs for more information about this AU!

**Author's Note:**

> So, my girlfriend and I have been discussing a theater AU for Shingeki for a week or two now, and we both decided to write fics for it. Hers is Stand Up, Don't Be Shy by BunBunC, and well, this is mine. (Be sure to check hers out because it's absolutely wonderful.)
> 
> I thought for a while what show I wanted them to do, and I finally decided Legally Blonde because, well I absolutely adore that show and movie, so I was like "oh why the fuck not?" So here it is.
> 
> If you have any other questions about the AU, you can go to either my tumblr (lordtwink) or my girlfriend's (gaymakeout), and we will be happy to answer them.


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